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The Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre showcased its work at the 10th Carbon Expo in Barcelona, Spain last week (May 29-31 2013). The Carbon Expo is the largest event for the international carbon market and attracts project developers, regulators, financiers, brokers, businesses, and entrepreneurs.

The Centre shared a display booth with Cuba and the UNEP Riso Centre. Despite the depressed state of the carbon market, approximately 2,200 participants attended the expo representing 110 countries and 150 exhibitors.

The expo was organized in three streams covering: policy, climate finance, and clean energy and clean technology in plenary, training and dialogue sessions. While the regulated market which developed as a result of the Kyoto Protocol has declined significantly in 2013, the voluntary market and the national and regional markets are expanding. The focus of the expo therefore was considering options for linking these diverse markets, exploring opportunities in NAMAs, understanding the new market mechanisms being negotiated under the UNFCCC, and bridging the gap until the new mechanisms come into effect. For the first time, the Carbon Expo included issues of adaptation on the agenda as the organizers appreciated the linkages between adaptation and mitigation.

The Centre’s representative at the Carbon Expo, Carlos Fuller, the International and Regional Liaison Officer, held discussions with the representatives of Cuba, UNEP Riso, Barbados, and representatives of several organizations to explore opportunities for collaboration in the Caribbean. The Centre work was also promoted through a World Bank display featuring the Pilot Programme for Climate Resilience (PPCR) project.

The Centre’s attendance was facilitated by the World Bank. Carbon Expo 2013 was preceded by the First Forum of the standing Committee on Finance of the UNFCCC, where Mr Fuller was part of a panel discussion during which he highlighted the work of the Centre in adaptation in the Caribbean.